I got utterly wrecked playing Vish Kal, Blood Arbiter by some of the newer 4-color commanders lately. Especially Yidris, Maelstrom Wielder cascader into cascades is hard. I'm changing it back (again :)) to my old Ayli, hoping to deter some early attacks. Do you think equipping Ayli with a Viridian Longbow too cute an idea? (shooting creatures down with her death touch).
Anyhow, please find here under my new (old) list, for your kind consideration.
So it goes without saying that Aether Revolt is looking pretty amazing as a set. There's a few things I've seen that have potential for the prime build and alternate builds. I'm going to wait until the full spoiler is released to do the usual set review so I can keep it all in one post. Reconstruction of the thread still ongoing behind the scenes!
I will say, however, that using Necropotence to draw your remaining life total in cards with Exquisite Archangel in play is a very, very tempting proposition. I could also see running Dark Confidant in a version running that Archangel.
Thank you for the insights as always. I enjoy reading them because it tempers my excitement.
I'm excited to see the list when you get it up and running. I know there has been some changes and I'm excited to see where your list stands.
Also, I'm watching the price of Imperial Seal daily. I wanna snag one once it goes under $100. Once I do, bye bye Utter End
Are you cutting Panharmonicon and Mangara of Corondor?
I wanted to thank you again. Your list is the reason why I play EDH Xenphire.
I'm flattered by the kind words Both Panharmonicon and Mangara of Corondor remain in the list, but regarding cutting something for Mimic Vat I think after some more thought I'd cut Panharmonicon. Obviously we can really abuse it, but I feel like the way I play the deck at least that I never go out of my way to find Panharmonicon. It's amazing by itself but I think it's inherent power level would make it prone to being instantly removed. When I see it hit any opponent's board, I know I immediately find a way to get rid of it. Mimic Vat is a bit more clever and more obscure and people tend to not understand what it's doing until it's too late. Now that I have a Recruiter of the Guard myself it also changed my mind a bit on cutting Mangara intead, since they're a great tool in the toolbox you can find with Recruiter. I recently had to sell a few of the cards in my Ayli deck to pay some emergency dental bills so I'm getting even more value out of the Recruiter than normal (I added in Vampire Hexmage, Priest of Gix, Grim Haruxpex, Dark Depths, Thespian's Stage, and a few others). Loving that card!
I'll see if my decklists on TappedOut are up to date and toss them out next time I post
I got utterly wrecked playing Vish Kal, Blood Arbiter by some of the newer 4-color commanders lately. Especially Yidris, Maelstrom Wielder cascader into cascades is hard. I'm changing it back (again :)) to my old Ayli, hoping to deter some early attacks. Do you think equipping Ayli with a Viridian Longbow too cute an idea? (shooting creatures down with her death touch).
Anyhow, please find here under my new (old) list, for your kind consideration.
Understandable! I felt like most of the Partner Commanders were also very combat oriented, so with the interest in the new decks it's been a good time to have that 2/3 Deathtouch in my area (Glissa, the Traitor has been my other deck as of late as a result hehe :D)
I'm sorry to hear of your trouble with dental bills. I hope it clears up and you can get the cards back. I'm sure Ayli understands. Just make sure to take her out once and awhile. I find she gets...punchy after too long.
Not to put too much pressure on you but I'm waiting with baited breath for the lost update.
I'm also excited for your set review. I've been losing my mind over these cards and your reviews calm me down. My wallet thanks you for it! Exhausted Angel looks good...Necromancy...mmmm.
Also, and I was hoping you wouldn't mind, but I saw what may be my next modern deck...B/W tokens. I saw you had a list. Is that on tapped out? Would the modern event deck "Marxh of the Multitudes" be a good start?
I look forward to every post and your insights. I'm glad we can talk over cards. Your list inspired me to build Ayli. And she has a beautiful wrymwood gaming deckbox.
Gray Merchant of Asphodel sometimes is a wincon, given enough reanimation and/ or blink (especially Corpse Dance). I tend to think of it as Kokusho2.
Serra Ascendant usually gets in for 1 or 2 hits, then attracts a removal spell by annoyed opponents. It's mainly just there to get my life total above the magical 50 mark with just 1 hit and a sacrifice to Ayli.
Also, it's very good with Vizkopa Guildmage.
Also, and I was hoping you wouldn't mind, but I saw what may be my next modern deck...B/W tokens. I saw you had a list. Is that on tapped out? Would the modern event deck "Marxh of the Multitudes" be a good start?
I look forward to every post and your insights. I'm glad we can talk over cards. Your list inspired me to build Ayli. And she has a beautiful wrymwood gaming deckbox.
I really need to get Ayli a special deckbox, myself. She's in one of those Ultra Pro Satin boxes right now. They work amazing and they're pretty secure, but this deck is my baby and deserves better haha!
Gray Merchant of Asphodel sometimes is a wincon, given enough reanimation and/ or blink (especially Corpse Dance). I tend to think of it as Kokusho2.
Serra Ascendant usually gets in for 1 or 2 hits, then attracts a removal spell by annoyed opponents. It's mainly just there to get my life total above the magical 50 mark with just 1 hit and a sacrifice to Ayli.
Also, it's very good with Vizkopa Guildmage.
Nice!
I forgot to mention Viridian Longbow last time, but it definitely does work in Glissa, the Traitor. It works better for her because her triggered ability wants creatures dying a lot. For Ayli I think it's kind of a "win more" type thing, but I would definitely include it if I were to do an Equipment package with Stoneforge Mystic and Stonehewer Giant to find stuff like Swiftfoot Boots, Skullclamp the Bow and other goodies. You'd definitely have to run protection because once the Deathtouch + Bow combo comes down they get hated off of the board pretty fast
I really need to get Ayli a special deckbox, myself. She's in one of those Ultra Pro Satin boxes right now. They work amazing and they're pretty secure, but this deck is my baby and deserves better haha!
I can completely understand. I haven't got a special deck box right now (just a Dragon Shield box) but my wife has a woodworks degree, I made a very subtle suggestion, and my birthday's coming up
Alright everyone, here comes my quick and dirty review of Aether Revolt. As usual, I won't review every card in our colors in this set. Much of any new set is limited fodder, and much of new sets are also far and away from interacting with the deck or don't really do what we want to do. These cards are ones worth considering or that I feel someone might question or consider for inclusion, themselves. Some are simply here to call out because they're amazing or decent cards you might be tempted to run but that can be "Win more" cards, while others I will tell you they are worth testing but it is up to you to decide what to cut to test them. At the moment I don't have any planned cuts to test anything from Aether Revolt, but I'm eyeing Exquisite Archangel and Treasure Keeper, myself.
Without further adieu, here's that review!
Countless Gears Renegade
Great for a tokens or Soul Sisters build! Through our typical reanimation shenanigans you can create a lot of sac fodder for incremental gains, which is what a tokens build wants to do, or gain a lot of life with any of the Soul Sisters on board.
Exquisite Archangel - One of the most impressive cards in the set and truly worthy of Mythic rarity. This flying beatstick, works amazingly with Necropotence and Hatred if you run it, and could make Dark Confidant more safe to run. This is a really solid toolkit card that is worth playing in place of another high cost card. I would run it just for fun or playing something different, but not sure what it would replace in the list. Like many cards, this is something you can stash away in your graveyard until you need it and then reanimate it with Instant speed using Corpse Dance, Necromancy or others.
Restoration Specialist - This has potential to be easily abused instant Artifact and Enchantment recursion. Other upsides are that you can fetch it with Recruiter of the Guard, it's Skullampable and would be great in a meta packing a lot of graveyard hate as additional protection for when key combo pieces such as Ashnod's Altar, Nim Deathmantle or Angelic Renewal end up in the graveyard.
Sram's Expertise - Could be fantastic in a Tokens build. I would play Sengir Autocrat in a Tokens build which enters with 4 bodies in total. This one gives you 3 for the same cost and any 3 cost spell, which could be a 4th body. Not saying to play one over the other as I'd play both, but the point is that they both give a token or Soul Sisters package a lot of value!
Defiant Salvager - A decent 3 mana sac outlet for Artifacts and Creatures both, but alas only at Sorcery speed. The speed stipulation is what holds this back from being a decent alternative to Spawning Pit as another sac outlet if you'd rather swing in with a creature or build something large using recursion shenanigans to sacrifice to Ayli's ability, intstead.
Fatal Push - I'll be playing this card in Modern, but in the land of giants that is EDH/Commander, I'll rely on my Swords to Plowshares and Path to Exile as my 1-mana removal that will hit a creature of any size.
Foundry Hornet - If you're running anything that consistently holds a +1/+1 counter and have reanimation abuse ready, this could be a board wipe for your opponent. Of course, there are a lot of other options that take a lot less work. I wouldn't go out of my way for this unless you're a horrible person that actually likes hornets and wasp-like bugs.
Gifted Aetherborn - Between this and the White Vampire Nighthawk-like creature from Kaladesh, B/W aggro and lifegain strategies are getting some pretty good targets. If you want to put things in the combat zone, you'd be remiss not to include this guy.
Herald of Anguish - You'd think something with that much text would be amazing, right? The thing is, Herald doesn't really do much for us. We run enough artifacts that we could Improvise enough to get his cost down a few mana. He causes opponents to discard on our end step, but unless you're in a Stax build, that's not all that important to us and even then that's a slow effect. We don't really have Artifacts we want to sacrifice, either. Like most big dumb Mythic Demons, this guy has a lot of text but just doesn't actually do much. He could be a finisher in BW in Standard and will probably end many games in Limited, but he just doesn't have what it takes to be useful to Ayli.
Perilous Predicament - The only reason I'm listing this here is because occasionally I've faced a situation where an opponent has a Blightsteel Colossus with an Archetype of Endurance on the board, making it really, really hard to get rid of. It's very meta dependant and though my build can get around this niche problem, perhaps others can't. The best thing about this spell is that it forces them to sacrifice an Artifact Creature specifically, so you can strongarm them into sacrificing a Blightsteel Colossus or other menace in addition to another creature. And it hits each opponent. And it's an Instant. I have no suggestions as to what I'd take out of a build based upon my primary one, but this is a pretty decent removal spell for when you want to hit a lot of things but don't necessarily want to wipe the board.
Yahenni, Undying Partisan - You're going to be killing a lot of your opponent's creatures, so Yahenni can get big pretty fast. You have stuff like Reassmebling Skeleton and other easily recurrable fodder to make sure Yahenni is Indestructible when you board wipe, leaving you with a really big Yahenni. Haste is icing on the cake because we aren't an aggro deck, but they're a very resilient creature with utility use for the deck. Yahenni is probably worth playing around with, though you may be hard up finding something to replace with them.
Yahenni's Expertise - I'm not a big fan of partial boardwipes. This is my reason for not running Massacre Wurm despite the triggered ability and even though he's very recurrable. Yahenni's Expertise falls into this category, but has a very interesting additional ability to cast anything that costs 3 or less from your hand for free. This can be spot removal to kill most of a board with Yahenni's Expertise then take care of that pesky bigger dude with much of our spot removal which costs 3 or less. You could cast Yawgmoth's Will with it. There's a lot you could do with this, but the setback is you'll be tempted to hold on to it looking for the perfect opportunity to maximize the card and end up never playing it trying to find that opportunity. It's a very interesting card that I wouldn't blame anyone for running for fun. Worth noting is that it's currently on pre-order for around $7-8 and I would suggest to pick one up now if you plan to use it. Languish was reaching the $12-15 mark before it rotated out of Standard, was Sorcery speed and didn't let you cast a free spell.
Hidden Stockpile - A token build would love this card as a cheap way to sacrifice something to Scry and because it'd be so easy to get a 1/1 Servo every turn to use for sac fodder. This is also a cute budget card that can work well alongside Reassembling Skeleton.
Paradox Engine - Not for us, sadly. This is an extremely powerful Artifact you would want to run in a deck that has a lot more permanents tapping for abilities such as mana rocks or powerful activated abilities on Creatures and Artifacts. We run surprisingly few, but that's because we want to be able to respond to opponents without the baggage of things already being tapped or unusable the turn they come onto the battlefield.
Planar Bridge - Amazing card but slow and will probably be removed before you can make it worth the combined 14 mana you need to make it useful. The truth is that with all the tutoring available in our colors, we should be winning the game with that kind of mana. This is what you call a "Win More" card in a deck like ours that doesn't generate the mana to abuse it really early on like in a deck running the Tron land set or other decks that ramp up quickly.
Treasure Keeper - With Nim Deathmantle and Ashnod's Altar or a sac outlet, you could very easily cast a lot of cards in the deck for free. In my primary build there are ~33 cards you could hit with this thing's death trigger. It's more valuable if you run Sensei's Divining Top or cast an Enlightened Tutor or Vampiric Tutor before his trigger resolves to get the most out of it. One of the most annoying parts of casting Yawgmoth's Will is the three mana you have to put into it initially, taking mana away that you could use on the spells in your graveyard. Thus, if you were to tutor Yawgmoth's Will to the top of your library and cast it for free, giving you more leeway with what you can cast. This may be one of the most powerful tools we get from Aether Revolt, but beware of casting spells for zero with it at inconvenient times. We have a few ways to manipulate the top of our library to maximize him.
Spire of Industry - Not the worst card out there for mana fixing, especially if you choose to run Ancient Den, Vault of Whispers and consistently keep mana rocks on the battlefield. I'm speculating that the price of this card may take off as a replacement for Glimmervoid in Modern Affinity decks due to it still tapping for mana if they get their board wiped. This is a judgment call for you, as how many Artifacts you run will determine how good or bad it is.
Treasure keeper looks very interesting. I def agree. I was thinking lf cutting Sad bot for it. Would that warrant testing?
Exquisite Angel also looks interesting. But I feel like I'd need to cut Angel of Serenity to test it.
Sigh idk.
Also, make Mimoc Vat primary deck again. it's really fun.
My land base is also different than yours. I have a Scrubland and a marsh Flats...as well as a Verdant Caracomvd, and a Flagetones. Is that too much?
Thank you for the great update. You've tempered my expectations. As for Yahenni's Expertise? I'll just get one at Game Day.
I'm just gonna say this b/c hopefully it'll happen. Recurring Nightmare gets unbanned with the next RC update.
I feel like I get too much value out of recurring Solemn Simulacrum to give him the cut. I'm really on the fence about Treasure Keeper or Exquisite Archangel, either one. I agree that Angel of Serenity is the right call to cut for Exquisite Archangel. We lose a bit of removal potential, but we have a ton of removal as it is. It may be a meta call against Storm decks like Melek and Mizzix or other infinite damage decks where one could instant reanimate the Angel onto the battlefield after they pick a number to stop at and let the damage resolve then triggering the Angel. I admit that I'm never said to use Angel of Serenity when I see it but it's more or less another tool in the box, so I feel it's easily switched out for such a grandiose effect like the one on the Archangel. Treasure Keeper is something else and I'm skeptical that I'm going to end up hitting the wrong spells at the wrong time. The deck requires a very controlled environment to be as resilient as it is. But free spells in a pinch could be a game saver. I'm looking at Tree of Perdition for a possible bench there if I decide to test it as they're in the same mana cost, even if the flavor is spot on. I love the synergy the Tree has with Ayli and Vizkopa Guildmage but it's a really delicate combo that requires the Tree not to die or get exiled before I can tap it, so I don't often go for that combo unless I draw into it.
The only reason I don't run Scrubland and Marsh Flats is that I simply haven't acquired them yet I felt Flagstones of Trokair wasn't worth the price tag when I saw it last, but I don't ever have to deal with mass land destruction in either of the metas I play in, so it's basically just a Plains with a fancy name from my end. If I ever start to run Desolation Angel again I'll probably make room for it. As for Mimic Vat, I actually stopped running it for the same reason I don't run Sorin Markov, which is mainly for reasons of fun/not fun. I love Mimic Vat, but even though I run a very tight ship and it's extremely hard to take Ayli down, I kind of draw the line at those two. Of course, I made that decision based on how the rest of my play groups were feeling after I used it - no one is a horrible person for playing it or anything like that. If the people I play with start getting cutthroat I'll drop both Sorin and the Vat back in to the deck in a heartbeat
If Recurring Nightmare were unbanned I'd probably scream tears of joy I never got to play with the card, although I've always wanted to. I've been tempted to put it in my Cube but I fear that it's power level is much higher than most of the rest of the cards in there
Do you have about 5-10 cards you keep with Ayli that get switched in and out say if you aren't feeling a certain card or a meta change occurs? I ask as it seems like that would be a good idea for me.
How are you finding Recruiter of the Guard? How is the testing of Magus of the Will going? The more I think about it, you may have been right about it effectively being 6cmc for the same effect. But...redundancy is good.
How's Breya coming along? Is there anything in Aether Revolt you want for her? ...any chance of a primer like this amazing one for her? I mean my wallet wouldn't want that, but I would.
Am I right in thinking that Vizkopa Guildmage and Exquisite Archangel makes all my oppononents lose 1BW times 40 life? (if I set myself to 0 with Necropotence for example) I think that effect or abilities that just set your life total to a certain amount (think Tree of Perdition or Sorin Markov, make you lose or gain the appropriate number of life?
Do you have about 5-10 cards you keep with Ayli that get switched in and out say if you aren't feeling a certain card or a meta change occurs? I ask as it seems like that would be a good idea for me.
How are you finding Recruiter of the Guard? How is the testing of Magus of the Will going? The more I think about it, you may have been right about it effectively being 6cmc for the same effect. But...redundancy is good.
How's Breya coming along? Is there anything in Aether Revolt you want for her? ...any chance of a primer like this amazing one for her? I mean my wallet wouldn't want that, but I would.
I really very rarely change cards in the deck unless I realize something just isn't that useful. I have 2-3 slots I devote to "personal" cards that have become less flexible as I've gotten cards I really like such as Kaya, Ghost Assassin and Ugin, the Spirit Dragon. There are some cards I know I would switch out if I needed to for a meta. Sorin, Grim Nemesis is a fun card but if I needed to play against combo I'd probably take him out for Sadistic Sacrament or Praetor's Grasp. Tree of Perdition always comes up because it's a cute and flavorful combo that is effective when I can get it off, but if I'm in a really cutthroat pod I'm constantly having to board wipe so getting three creatures to stick can be a bit complicated.
As for Breya, I probably won't be doing a Primer for her because I don't play her too much. I mostly got her just to get Magus of the Will but I just built Sidisi, Brood Tyrant and am tweaking Glissa, the Traitor. I like what I've done with Breya so far but so many people are running her that it kind of gets boring. If I ever do another Primer it'll probably be for Glissa or Selvala, Explorer Returned Possibly Rakdos, Lord of Riots. I have a lot of EDH decks
Am I right in thinking that Vizkopa Guildmage and Exquisite Archangel makes all my oppononents lose 1BW times 40 life? (if I set myself to 0 with Necropotence for example) I think that effect or abilities that just set your life total to a certain amount (think Tree of Perdition or Sorin Markov, make you lose or gain the appropriate number of life?
That should be the case.
118.5. If an effect sets a player's life total to a specific number, the player gains or loses the necessary amount of life to end up with the new total
This was abysmal. Everyone considers Ayli a combo deck that needs to be held down. T2 Ayli gets exiled (while there are much scarier things on the board) - T4 again.
Next few turns, I get a couple more removal and land-destuction spells pointed at me, and I'm forced to scoop T8 with only 2 plains remaining, nothing else on the board, and Atraxa and Reaper King fight it out behemoth style with 8 and 10 mana spells resolving unhindered.
Somehow this deck has the reputation of being the villain that makes unexpected wins from outta nowhere, and thus must be kept down. :-( Arguing this is not necessarily so helps nothing.
Prerelease weekend, woo! I hope everyone had as good of a time as I did I went 2-2 at my Saturday Noon prerelease and 3-1 at my 6 PM prerelease. Had a totally insane BR Aggro sealed deck for the 6 PM and went 2-0 every round finishing my match before anyone else. Went 1-2 my last round but probably could have gone 2-0 if I took a mulligan for a faster hand Game 2. Still won 4 packs and pulled an Exquisite Archangel, so I'm super happy either way
After testing Magus of the Will the last couple weeks, I've decided to try to replace him with Exquisite Archangel. In my environment there is a lot of instant hate and I end up playing with people who have great threat assessment skills. Because of this, Magus very rarely sticks on the board long enough to be able to use his ability next turn. While there are some ways around this, paying so much mana to reanimate him on my turn with something like Corpse Dance that gives him Haste then using the mana to activate him is so steep that I'm never left with much mana to abuse the ability. At this point I feel like just having Yawgmoth's Will and tutoring for it is fine by itself and that the liability of being a creature that has to wait to use it's ability makes Magus of the Will too inconsistent.
I personally play Elfball Combo. It's pretty susceptible to board wipes, but if left unchecked it's super easy to combo out. I'll put my list on TappedOut later and PM it to you
This was abysmal. Everyone considers Ayli a combo deck that needs to be held down. T2 Ayli gets exiled (while there are much scarier things on the board) - T4 again.
Next few turns, I get a couple more removal and land-destuction spells pointed at me, and I'm forced to scoop T8 with only 2 plains remaining, nothing else on the board, and Atraxa and Reaper King fight it out behemoth style with 8 and 10 mana spells resolving unhindered.
Somehow this deck has the reputation of being the villain that makes unexpected wins from outta nowhere, and thus must be kept down. :-( Arguing this is not necessarily so helps nothing.
That's unfortunate. This sort of thing is why I almost always refuse to play anything bigger than a 4-player pod. The deck can deal with being the Archenemy, but making the fight 5-on-1 makes it almost impossible. If you're still facing hate in 4-player pods, then it's probably a call for escalation, which means more aggressive stuff like Desolation Angel, Sorin Markov, Reanimate, Hatred and a more aggressive removal strategy that becomes more proactive than reactive.
I had a feeling Magus of the Will was a tad too slow to keep its spot in the deck.
Also, in other news...I'm watching the Jusge Promo Imperial Seal like a hawk. I have a price point I'm willing to pay and it's not there yet. Would you still replace Utter End with it?
That's unfortunate. This sort of thing is why I almost always refuse to play anything bigger than a 4-player pod. The deck can deal with being the Archenemy, but making the fight 5-on-1 makes it almost impossible. If you're still facing hate in 4-player pods, then it's probably a call for escalation, which means more aggressive stuff like Desolation Angel, Sorin Markov, Reanimate, Hatred and a more aggressive removal strategy that becomes more proactive than reactive.
I'll keep that in mind for the next games. Also: your list inspired me: I just bought a nice Italian Ugin, the spirit dragon
That's unfortunate. This sort of thing is why I almost always refuse to play anything bigger than a 4-player pod. The deck can deal with being the Archenemy, but making the fight 5-on-1 makes it almost impossible. If you're still facing hate in 4-player pods, then it's probably a call for escalation, which means more aggressive stuff like Desolation Angel, Sorin Markov, Reanimate, Hatred and a more aggressive removal strategy that becomes more proactive than reactive.
I'll keep that in mind for the next games. Also: your list inspired me: I just bought a nice Italian Ugin, the spirit dragon
Awesome! I got a foil a bit ago and it's one of my favorites in the deck I don't think you'll be disappointed. I've come back from a pretty hard beating by following a Merciless Eviction or board wipe up with Ugin, the Spirit Dragon and using his +2 to nail creatures as they hit the board; or in many cases used his -X to clear the board and leave my mana rocks and sac outlets intact. He's very hard for people to deal with without direct removal spells because of how easy it is to protect him once he's on the board between his own abilities and the removal suite Ayli can run Funnily enough, I've never used his ultimate yet because he ends up just being a turret for wiping out my opponent's stuff repeatedly as I recover from being the Archenemy in the games he comes out.
Were you able to obtain Dragon Shield Pupele matte sleeves? I bet they look awesome.
How has Exquisite Archangel testing gone? Truthfully, I like what she can do...and she seems like a good toolbox card.
Also, I cut Fellwar Stone for Chromatic Lantern. It's been testing well so far. I did it when I saw you suggested it. I think it would be something to consider as well for testing for yourself.
I'm excited to see the list when you get it up and running. I know there has been some changes and I'm excited to see where your list stands.
Also, I'm watching the price of Imperial Seal daily. I wanna snag one once it goes under $100. Once I do, bye bye Utter End
Are you cutting Panharmonicon and Mangara of Corondor?
I wanted to thank you again. Your list is the reason why I play EDH Xenphire.
Anyhow, please find here under my new (old) list, for your kind consideration.
1 Ayli, Eternal Pilgrim
Land (37)
8 Plains
9 Swamp
1 Scrubland
1 Marsh Flats
1 Godless Shrine
1 Isolated Chapel
1 Tainted Field
1 Caves of Koilos
1 Fetid Heath
1 Temple of Silence
1 Command Tower
1 Bojuka Bog
1 Urborg, Tomb of Yawgmoth
1 Shizo, Death's Storehouse
1 Eiganjo Castle
1 Flagstones of Trokair
1 Strip Mine
1 High Market
1 Volrath's Stronghold
1 Phyrexian Tower
1 Geier Reach Sanitarium
1 Maze of Ith
Mana Help (7)
1 Mana Crypt
1 Sol Ring
1 Fellwar Stone
1 Orzhov Signet
1 Coalition Relic
1 Chromatic Lantern
1 Weathered Wayfarer
1 Demonic Tutor
1 Vampiric Tutor
1 Entomb
1 Enlightened Tutor
1 Rune-Scarred Demon
1 Recruiter of the Guard
1 Necropotence
1 Phyrexian Arena
1 Skullclamp
1 Sorin, Grim Nemesis
1 Sensei's Divining Top
Removal (10)
1 Swords to Plowshares
1 Vindicate
1 Anguished Unmaking
1 Utter End
1 Archon of Justice
1 Ashen Rider
1 Mangara of Corondor
1 Fiend Hunter
1 Fleshbag Marauder
1 Angel of Serenity
Sweepers (5)
1 False Prophet
1 Damnation
1 Merciless Eviction
1 Black Sun's Zenith
1 Demon of Dark Schemes
Recursion (14)
1 Reveillark
1 Karmic Guide
1 Sheoldred, Whispering One
1 Xiahou Dun, The One-Eyed
1 Puppeteer Clique
1 Sun Titan
1 Angelic Renewal
1 Profane Command
1 Beacon of Unrest
1 Argivian Find
1 Necromancy
1 Corpse Dance
1 Nim Deathmantle
1 Yawgmoth's Will
1 Vish Kal, Blood Arbiter
1 Viscera Seer
1 Spawning Pit
1 Blasting Station
1 Ashnod's Altar
Various(10)
1 Serra Ascendant
1 Blood Artist
1 Vizkopa Guildmage
1 Reassembling Skeleton
1 Nezumi Graverobber
1 Divinity of Pride
1 Kokusho, the Evening Star
1 Yosei, the Morning Star
1 Gray Merchant of Asphodel
1 Exsanguinate
WB Ayli, Eternal Recursion WB - GUPir and Toothy GU - WBR Mathas, Fiend SeekerWBR
I will say, however, that using Necropotence to draw your remaining life total in cards with Exquisite Archangel in play is a very, very tempting proposition. I could also see running Dark Confidant in a version running that Archangel.
I'm flattered by the kind words
I'll see if my decklists on TappedOut are up to date and toss them out next time I post
Understandable! I felt like most of the Partner Commanders were also very combat oriented, so with the interest in the new decks it's been a good time to have that 2/3 Deathtouch in my area (Glissa, the Traitor has been my other deck as of late as a result hehe :D)
As for the list, looks pretty solid! Can appreciate a few of the changes in there. [Divinity of Pride, Blood Artist and Black Sun's Zenith were three of my favorites from previous builds and I still switch BSZ in and out depending on how the meta is going.. Chromatic Lantern is definitely not a bad choice. I've been considering removing Fellwar Stone in order to make room for it, myself. How do Grey Merchant of Asphodel and Serra Ascendant work for you?
(Also known as Xenphire)
Not to put too much pressure on you but I'm waiting with baited breath for the lost update.
I'm also excited for your set review. I've been losing my mind over these cards and your reviews calm me down. My wallet thanks you for it! Exhausted Angel looks good...Necromancy...mmmm.
Also, and I was hoping you wouldn't mind, but I saw what may be my next modern deck...B/W tokens. I saw you had a list. Is that on tapped out? Would the modern event deck "Marxh of the Multitudes" be a good start?
I look forward to every post and your insights. I'm glad we can talk over cards. Your list inspired me to build Ayli. And she has a beautiful wrymwood gaming deckbox.
Serra Ascendant usually gets in for 1 or 2 hits, then attracts a removal spell by annoyed opponents. It's mainly just there to get my life total above the magical 50 mark with just 1 hit and a sacrifice to Ayli.
Also, it's very good with Vizkopa Guildmage.
WB Ayli, Eternal Recursion WB - GUPir and Toothy GU - WBR Mathas, Fiend SeekerWBR
I really need to get Ayli a special deckbox, myself. She's in one of those Ultra Pro Satin boxes right now. They work amazing and they're pretty secure, but this deck is my baby and deserves better haha!
As for BW tokens:
The Modern Event Deck goes for about $89 on Amazon. For an ideal build, you'd use the following out of the precon: 2 Inquisition of Kozilek, 4 Lingering Souls, 4 Spectral Procession, 3 Path to Exile, 2-3 Zealous Persecution, 4 Intangible Virtue, 2 Isolated Chapel, 2 Burrenton Forge-Tender and 2 Dismember. On TCGPlayer I was able to get all of this optimized for a total of $63. With the remainder, you're probably getting close to what you bought the precon for. But you don't really want the rest for a BW Tokens Build, so for the purpose of putting that deck together you're better buying those singles and saving about $20 you can put towards other cards you'll need. You still need 4 Thoughtseize, 3-4 Sorin, Solemn Simulacrum, 3-4 Bitterblossom 4 Godless Shrine, 4 Marsh Flats, probably a couple Fetid Heath and Concealed Courtyard. I'm getting ready to update my build to run 2-3 Liliana of the Veil and make a few changes for Aether Revolt so I don't have an updated list right yet, but it'll look something like this, though not exactly:
3 Concealed Courtyard
2 Fetid Heath
4 Godless Shrine
3 Shambling Vent
Planeswalkers:
3 Sorin, Solemn Visitor
2 Liliana of the Veil
Other Spells:
3 Bitterblossom
3 Fatal Push
2 Inquisition of Kozilek
4 Intangible Virtue
4 Lingering Souls
4 Path to Exile
3 Spectral Procession
4 Thoughtseize
2 Zealous Persecution
3 Burrenton Forge-Tender
1 Liliana of the Veil
2 Selfless Spirit
2 Stony Silence
2 Wrath of God
1 Zealous Persecution
Nice!
I forgot to mention Viridian Longbow last time, but it definitely does work in Glissa, the Traitor. It works better for her because her triggered ability wants creatures dying a lot. For Ayli I think it's kind of a "win more" type thing, but I would definitely include it if I were to do an Equipment package with Stoneforge Mystic and Stonehewer Giant to find stuff like Swiftfoot Boots, Skullclamp the Bow and other goodies. You'd definitely have to run protection because once the Deathtouch + Bow combo comes down they get hated off of the board pretty fast
(Also known as Xenphire)
I can completely understand. I haven't got a special deck box right now (just a Dragon Shield box) but my wife has a woodworks degree, I made a very subtle suggestion, and my birthday's coming up
Do you 'pimp' your decks?
A few of my pride and joys: (sorry about the bragging)
- Alpha/Beta: all basic swamp and plains, Swords to Plowshares, Demonic Tutor
- Collector's Edition: Scrubland (I always have a Revised version with me, should anyone object)
- Fullart versions: Utter End, Anguished Unmaking, Damnation, Black Sun's Zenith
- Judge Promo: Vindicate, Xiahou Dun, the One-Eyed
- Foil: everything I've been able to find - I have now all the
- German (because it totally sounds awesome in German): Blutsaugender Lehrmeister
WB Ayli, Eternal Recursion WB - GUPir and Toothy GU - WBR Mathas, Fiend SeekerWBR
I'm very excited for your AER breakdown for Ayli..I feel like there are a lot of cards that could see testing.
Thank you, again, for everything.
Alright everyone, here comes my quick and dirty review of Aether Revolt. As usual, I won't review every card in our colors in this set. Much of any new set is limited fodder, and much of new sets are also far and away from interacting with the deck or don't really do what we want to do. These cards are ones worth considering or that I feel someone might question or consider for inclusion, themselves. Some are simply here to call out because they're amazing or decent cards you might be tempted to run but that can be "Win more" cards, while others I will tell you they are worth testing but it is up to you to decide what to cut to test them. At the moment I don't have any planned cuts to test anything from Aether Revolt, but I'm eyeing Exquisite Archangel and Treasure Keeper, myself.
Without further adieu, here's that review!
Countless Gears Renegade
Great for a tokens or Soul Sisters build! Through our typical reanimation shenanigans you can create a lot of sac fodder for incremental gains, which is what a tokens build wants to do, or gain a lot of life with any of the Soul Sisters on board.
Exquisite Archangel - One of the most impressive cards in the set and truly worthy of Mythic rarity. This flying beatstick, works amazingly with Necropotence and Hatred if you run it, and could make Dark Confidant more safe to run. This is a really solid toolkit card that is worth playing in place of another high cost card. I would run it just for fun or playing something different, but not sure what it would replace in the list. Like many cards, this is something you can stash away in your graveyard until you need it and then reanimate it with Instant speed using Corpse Dance, Necromancy or others.
Restoration Specialist - This has potential to be easily abused instant Artifact and Enchantment recursion. Other upsides are that you can fetch it with Recruiter of the Guard, it's Skullampable and would be great in a meta packing a lot of graveyard hate as additional protection for when key combo pieces such as Ashnod's Altar, Nim Deathmantle or Angelic Renewal end up in the graveyard.
Sram's Expertise - Could be fantastic in a Tokens build. I would play Sengir Autocrat in a Tokens build which enters with 4 bodies in total. This one gives you 3 for the same cost and any 3 cost spell, which could be a 4th body. Not saying to play one over the other as I'd play both, but the point is that they both give a token or Soul Sisters package a lot of value!
Defiant Salvager - A decent 3 mana sac outlet for Artifacts and Creatures both, but alas only at Sorcery speed. The speed stipulation is what holds this back from being a decent alternative to Spawning Pit as another sac outlet if you'd rather swing in with a creature or build something large using recursion shenanigans to sacrifice to Ayli's ability, intstead.
Fatal Push - I'll be playing this card in Modern, but in the land of giants that is EDH/Commander, I'll rely on my Swords to Plowshares and Path to Exile as my 1-mana removal that will hit a creature of any size.
Foundry Hornet - If you're running anything that consistently holds a +1/+1 counter and have reanimation abuse ready, this could be a board wipe for your opponent. Of course, there are a lot of other options that take a lot less work. I wouldn't go out of my way for this unless you're a horrible person that actually likes hornets and wasp-like bugs.
Gifted Aetherborn - Between this and the White Vampire Nighthawk-like creature from Kaladesh, B/W aggro and lifegain strategies are getting some pretty good targets. If you want to put things in the combat zone, you'd be remiss not to include this guy.
Herald of Anguish - You'd think something with that much text would be amazing, right? The thing is, Herald doesn't really do much for us. We run enough artifacts that we could Improvise enough to get his cost down a few mana. He causes opponents to discard on our end step, but unless you're in a Stax build, that's not all that important to us and even then that's a slow effect. We don't really have Artifacts we want to sacrifice, either. Like most big dumb Mythic Demons, this guy has a lot of text but just doesn't actually do much. He could be a finisher in BW in Standard and will probably end many games in Limited, but he just doesn't have what it takes to be useful to Ayli.
Perilous Predicament - The only reason I'm listing this here is because occasionally I've faced a situation where an opponent has a Blightsteel Colossus with an Archetype of Endurance on the board, making it really, really hard to get rid of. It's very meta dependant and though my build can get around this niche problem, perhaps others can't. The best thing about this spell is that it forces them to sacrifice an Artifact Creature specifically, so you can strongarm them into sacrificing a Blightsteel Colossus or other menace in addition to another creature. And it hits each opponent. And it's an Instant. I have no suggestions as to what I'd take out of a build based upon my primary one, but this is a pretty decent removal spell for when you want to hit a lot of things but don't necessarily want to wipe the board.
Yahenni, Undying Partisan - You're going to be killing a lot of your opponent's creatures, so Yahenni can get big pretty fast. You have stuff like Reassmebling Skeleton and other easily recurrable fodder to make sure Yahenni is Indestructible when you board wipe, leaving you with a really big Yahenni. Haste is icing on the cake because we aren't an aggro deck, but they're a very resilient creature with utility use for the deck. Yahenni is probably worth playing around with, though you may be hard up finding something to replace with them.
Yahenni's Expertise - I'm not a big fan of partial boardwipes. This is my reason for not running Massacre Wurm despite the triggered ability and even though he's very recurrable. Yahenni's Expertise falls into this category, but has a very interesting additional ability to cast anything that costs 3 or less from your hand for free. This can be spot removal to kill most of a board with Yahenni's Expertise then take care of that pesky bigger dude with much of our spot removal which costs 3 or less. You could cast Yawgmoth's Will with it. There's a lot you could do with this, but the setback is you'll be tempted to hold on to it looking for the perfect opportunity to maximize the card and end up never playing it trying to find that opportunity. It's a very interesting card that I wouldn't blame anyone for running for fun. Worth noting is that it's currently on pre-order for around $7-8 and I would suggest to pick one up now if you plan to use it. Languish was reaching the $12-15 mark before it rotated out of Standard, was Sorcery speed and didn't let you cast a free spell.
Hidden Stockpile - A token build would love this card as a cheap way to sacrifice something to Scry and because it'd be so easy to get a 1/1 Servo every turn to use for sac fodder. This is also a cute budget card that can work well alongside Reassembling Skeleton.
Paradox Engine - Not for us, sadly. This is an extremely powerful Artifact you would want to run in a deck that has a lot more permanents tapping for abilities such as mana rocks or powerful activated abilities on Creatures and Artifacts. We run surprisingly few, but that's because we want to be able to respond to opponents without the baggage of things already being tapped or unusable the turn they come onto the battlefield.
Planar Bridge - Amazing card but slow and will probably be removed before you can make it worth the combined 14 mana you need to make it useful. The truth is that with all the tutoring available in our colors, we should be winning the game with that kind of mana. This is what you call a "Win More" card in a deck like ours that doesn't generate the mana to abuse it really early on like in a deck running the Tron land set or other decks that ramp up quickly.
Treasure Keeper - With Nim Deathmantle and Ashnod's Altar or a sac outlet, you could very easily cast a lot of cards in the deck for free. In my primary build there are ~33 cards you could hit with this thing's death trigger. It's more valuable if you run Sensei's Divining Top or cast an Enlightened Tutor or Vampiric Tutor before his trigger resolves to get the most out of it. One of the most annoying parts of casting Yawgmoth's Will is the three mana you have to put into it initially, taking mana away that you could use on the spells in your graveyard. Thus, if you were to tutor Yawgmoth's Will to the top of your library and cast it for free, giving you more leeway with what you can cast. This may be one of the most powerful tools we get from Aether Revolt, but beware of casting
Spire of Industry - Not the worst card out there for mana fixing, especially if you choose to run Ancient Den, Vault of Whispers and consistently keep mana rocks on the battlefield. I'm speculating that the price of this card may take off as a replacement for Glimmervoid in Modern Affinity decks due to it still tapping for mana if they get their board wiped. This is a judgment call for you, as how many Artifacts you run will determine how good or bad it is.
(Also known as Xenphire)
Exquisite Angel also looks interesting. But I feel like I'd need to cut Angel of Serenity to test it.
Sigh idk.
Also, make Mimoc Vat primary deck again.
My land base is also different than yours. I have a Scrubland and a marsh Flats...as well as a Verdant Caracomvd, and a Flagetones. Is that too much?
Thank you for the great update. You've tempered my expectations. As for Yahenni's Expertise? I'll just get one at Game Day.
I'm just gonna say this b/c hopefully it'll happen. Recurring Nightmare gets unbanned with the next RC update.
I feel like I get too much value out of recurring Solemn Simulacrum to give him the cut. I'm really on the fence about Treasure Keeper or Exquisite Archangel, either one. I agree that Angel of Serenity is the right call to cut for Exquisite Archangel. We lose a bit of removal potential, but we have a ton of removal as it is. It may be a meta call against Storm decks like Melek and Mizzix or other infinite damage decks where one could instant reanimate the Angel onto the battlefield after they pick a number to stop at and let the damage resolve then triggering the Angel. I admit that I'm never said to use Angel of Serenity when I see it but it's more or less another tool in the box, so I feel it's easily switched out for such a grandiose effect like the one on the Archangel. Treasure Keeper is something else and I'm skeptical that I'm going to end up hitting the wrong spells at the wrong time. The deck requires a very controlled environment to be as resilient as it is. But free spells in a pinch could be a game saver. I'm looking at Tree of Perdition for a possible bench there if I decide to test it as they're in the same mana cost, even if the flavor is spot on. I love the synergy the Tree has with Ayli and Vizkopa Guildmage but it's a really delicate combo that requires the Tree not to die or get exiled before I can tap it, so I don't often go for that combo unless I draw into it.
The only reason I don't run Scrubland and Marsh Flats is that I simply haven't acquired them yet
If Recurring Nightmare were unbanned I'd probably scream tears of joy
(Also known as Xenphire)
How are you finding Recruiter of the Guard? How is the testing of Magus of the Will going? The more I think about it, you may have been right about it effectively being 6cmc for the same effect. But...redundancy is good.
How's Breya coming along? Is there anything in Aether Revolt you want for her? ...any chance of a primer like this amazing one for her? I mean my wallet wouldn't want that, but I would.
WB Ayli, Eternal Recursion WB - GUPir and Toothy GU - WBR Mathas, Fiend SeekerWBR
I really very rarely change cards in the deck unless I realize something just isn't that useful. I have 2-3 slots I devote to "personal" cards that have become less flexible as I've gotten cards I really like such as Kaya, Ghost Assassin and Ugin, the Spirit Dragon. There are some cards I know I would switch out if I needed to for a meta. Sorin, Grim Nemesis is a fun card but if I needed to play against combo I'd probably take him out for Sadistic Sacrament or Praetor's Grasp. Tree of Perdition always comes up because it's a cute and flavorful combo that is effective when I can get it off, but if I'm in a really cutthroat pod I'm constantly having to board wipe so getting three creatures to stick can be a bit complicated.
As for Breya, I probably won't be doing a Primer for her because I don't play her too much. I mostly got her just to get Magus of the Will but I just built Sidisi, Brood Tyrant and am tweaking Glissa, the Traitor. I like what I've done with Breya so far but so many people are running her that it kind of gets boring. If I ever do another Primer it'll probably be for Glissa or Selvala, Explorer Returned
That should be the case.
118.5. If an effect sets a player's life total to a specific number, the player gains or loses the necessary amount of life to end up with the new total
That would mean Vizkopa Guildmage + Necropotence + Exquisite Archangel is another win con
(Also known as Xenphire)
I don't want to get too far off topic, but do you have any quick Selvala, Explorer Returned tips?
Normally I play in 4-player pods, but yesterday we tried 2 games with 6 players.
(Mogis, God of Slaughter, Breya, Etherium Shaper, Atraxa, Praetors' Voice, Reaper King, Karona, False God, and me, with Ayli, Eternal Pilgrim).
This was abysmal. Everyone considers Ayli a combo deck that needs to be held down. T2 Ayli gets exiled (while there are much scarier things on the board) - T4 again.
Next few turns, I get a couple more removal and land-destuction spells pointed at me, and I'm forced to scoop T8 with only 2 plains remaining, nothing else on the board, and Atraxa and Reaper King fight it out behemoth style with 8 and 10 mana spells resolving unhindered.
Somehow this deck has the reputation of being the villain that makes unexpected wins from outta nowhere, and thus must be kept down. :-( Arguing this is not necessarily so helps nothing.
WB Ayli, Eternal Recursion WB - GUPir and Toothy GU - WBR Mathas, Fiend SeekerWBR
After testing Magus of the Will the last couple weeks, I've decided to try to replace him with Exquisite Archangel. In my environment there is a lot of instant hate and I end up playing with people who have great threat assessment skills. Because of this, Magus very rarely sticks on the board long enough to be able to use his ability next turn. While there are some ways around this, paying so much mana to reanimate him on my turn with something like Corpse Dance that gives him Haste then using the mana to activate him is so steep that I'm never left with much mana to abuse the ability. At this point I feel like just having Yawgmoth's Will and tutoring for it is fine by itself and that the liability of being a creature that has to wait to use it's ability makes Magus of the Will too inconsistent.
I'm also looking at Treasure Keeper and Yahenni, Undying Partisan, as well. I'll post updates as I continue testing
I personally play Elfball Combo. It's pretty susceptible to board wipes, but if left unchecked it's super easy to combo out. I'll put my list on TappedOut later and PM it to you
No problem!
That's unfortunate. This sort of thing is why I almost always refuse to play anything bigger than a 4-player pod. The deck can deal with being the Archenemy, but making the fight 5-on-1 makes it almost impossible. If you're still facing hate in 4-player pods, then it's probably a call for escalation, which means more aggressive stuff like Desolation Angel, Sorin Markov, Reanimate, Hatred and a more aggressive removal strategy that becomes more proactive than reactive.
(Also known as Xenphire)
Also, in other news...I'm watching the Jusge Promo Imperial Seal like a hawk. I have a price point I'm willing to pay and it's not there yet. Would you still replace Utter End with it?
I'll keep that in mind for the next games. Also: your list inspired me: I just bought a nice Italian Ugin, the spirit dragon
WB Ayli, Eternal Recursion WB - GUPir and Toothy GU - WBR Mathas, Fiend SeekerWBR
Awesome! I got a foil a bit ago and it's one of my favorites in the deck
(Also known as Xenphire)
I would, yes. Being able to tutor to the numerous answers in the deck is wonderful
(Also known as Xenphire)
Were you able to obtain Dragon Shield Pupele matte sleeves? I bet they look awesome.
How has Exquisite Archangel testing gone? Truthfully, I like what she can do...and she seems like a good toolbox card.
Also, I cut Fellwar Stone for Chromatic Lantern. It's been testing well so far. I did it when I saw you suggested it. I think it would be something to consider as well for testing for yourself.
I hope the redesign is going well.
WB Ayli, Eternal Recursion WB - GUPir and Toothy GU - WBR Mathas, Fiend SeekerWBR